N. BERNARD. 403 " sorrow, and do humbly crave pardon of Almighty God, " ofhis majesty, and of this congregation. "And whereas in the said sermon, I had this passage: " If God's ordinances of public worship, in their purity, be " the glory of a nation ; then it follows, that they who go " about to deprive a nation of them, either wholly or oftheir " purity, go about to make the nation base and inglorious, " and are the enemies and traitors of that nation. Hereby " we maylearn how to account of those among ourselves, (if " any suchthere be,) who endeavour to quench the light and " abate the glory of our Israel, by bringing their Pelagian " errors into the doctrine of our church, and the supersti- " tious ceremonies of the church of Rome into out worship " of God : as, high altars, crucifixes, bowing to them, and " worshipping them.; whereby, they very shamefully symbo- " lize with the church of Rome, to the irreparable ship- " wreck of many souls.' I do now, upon better information, find that many erroneous and dangerous assertions and " consequences, unfit to be here expressed, may be collected " and inferred from the said words. I do, therefore, hereby " publicly recant all the said words, as they were used or " may be inferred, to be very rashly and inconsiderately " uttered, and to be very undutiful to his majesty. I do " humbly refer and submit myself to his majesty's clemency " and gracious acceptance, for the interpretation of my " meaning; and I amheartily sorry, and do humbly crave " pardon, that words and applications, so scandalous and " dangerous to the present state of the church of England, proceeded from me. "And whereas, in the same sermon, I had this passage : " ' By God's -ordinances here, I understand the word, sacra- " ments and prayer, in that purity in which the Lord Christ " left them, not blinded and adulteraled with any supersti- " tious inventions ofmen ; for then they cease to be God's " ordinances, and he owns them no longer.' I desire that " this passage may be taken and understood as I spake and " meant it, and not otherwise. Not that I hold all human " inventions added to God's ordinances, to be superstitious; " for I account that tenet not only false, but palpably. " absurd and foolish ; but to exclude all those human in- " ventions, which may hinder the preservation of the doctrine and discipline of this church of England, in that " purity and integrity wherein, through God's gracious " goodness, by his majesty's laws ecclesiastical, we do enjoy " them. And whereas, by some other passaies in my said
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